In applications such as telecommunications power supplies converters must meet requirements as to Total Harmonic Distortion, harmonic current limits, isolation etc. whilst also achieving high conversion efficiencies. The performance requirements for isolated AC to DC switched mode power supplies for use in telecommunications and large computer applications have to a large extent been met through the adoption of two-stage power supply designs. The first power conversion stage serves the purpose of achieving Power Factor Correction (PFC) by employing some form of PFC controlled boost converter. Small power supplies tend to use single-phase mains input whereas larger power supplies tend to adopt three-phase mains input and hence need some form of three-phase PFC boost converter (e.g. the Vienna converter). The second power conversion stage serves the purpose of voltage transformation/isolation and output voltage/current control. This second stage converter usually employs resonant switching techniques in order to maximise conversion efficiency and minimise the size and cooling requirements (hence cost) of the power supply design solution. The problem with two stage cascaded power supplies is that the total conversion losses is the sum total of the losses of each conversion stage. With each stage achieving typically 96% conversion efficiency a 92% total efficiency typically results.
The promise of high theoretical single stage efficiencies has allured many power supply designers to try to develop effective single stage AC to DC switched mode power supplies. The energy storage requirements related with single-phase converters has resulted in complex single stage designs with poor overall conversion efficiencies that lack any practical advantage over the conventional two-stage design approach.
FIG. 1 shows a prior art full bridge cyclo-converter consisting of six bidirectional switches 1 to 6 supplied via three-phase lines 7 to 9 which drives the primary 10 offer output transformer 11. Switch 1 consists of a forward MOSFET 13 in parallel with a body diode 15 in series with a reverse MOSFET 14 in parallel with body diode16. Switches 2 and 3 are of the same configuration. A half bridge rectifier 12 is provided at the output off the transformer. The cyclo-converter is hard switched to effect PWM control. To achieve the desired voltage at the output the top and bottom switching sequences are offset the required amount. The degree of offset determines the period of time the output transformer is shorted and does the period of time that currents circulate within the cyclo-converter. This circulated current (as opposed to current transferred to the current doubler 12) incurs losses as it passes through switches 1 to 6. This approach provides an easily controlled converter as the output voltage may easily be brought down by adjusting the offset of the upper and low switching. However, this converter requires 12 switching components and the hard switching employed requires highly rated components to handle with the spikes and losses. Further, such converters typically only have a conversion efficiency of about 93% and the losses and large number of power components makes the converter physically large and expensive to produce.
The publication “A Zero-Voltage Switched, Three-Phase PWM Switching Rectifier with Power Factor Correction” from Proceedings of the High-Frequency Power Conversion Conference: Toronto, Canada; Jun. 9-14, 1991; pp. 252-264 discloses a full bridge cyclo-converter in which a switching sequence is employed utilising resonant switching in. However, the switching is simple on/off switching and the switching sequence is only partially optimised and does not provide full resonant switching.
Series resonant converters have been provided which employ full resonant switching (i.e. the switched currents are near zero at turn off and turn on to effect “soft switching” at all switching points). However, such converters include complex control circuits and can only switch DC supplies. It can also be difficult to control the output of such converters solely by controlling the switching frequency for low power output levels.
It would be desirable to provide an isolated converter operable over a wide range of input voltages having high conversion efficiency, a low power component count, low rated power components, no large inductors or storage components and low harmonic distortion
It is an object of the invention to provide a converter satisfying the above requirements or to at least provide the public with a useful choice.